San Sebastian de Garabandal

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San Sebastian de Garabandal is a rural village in the Pena Sagra mountain range of Northern Spain. Located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, about 600 meters above sea level, Garabandal is about 35 miles (55 km) from the Cantabrian capital, Santander, and roughly 250 miles (400 km) from the Spanish capital, Madrid. It has a population of about 300.

Commonly referred to simply as Garabandal, this town received a huge amount of publicity in the early 1960s.

[edit] Visitations and messages

From 1961 to 1965, four young schoolgirls (Mari Loli Mazon, Jacinta Gonzalez, Maricruz Gonzalez and Conchita Gonzalez) said they had received visitations and messages from St. Michael the Archangel and the Blessed Virgin Mary (see Marian apparitions). The visitations numbered in the thousands, drew huge crowds, and featured supposed supernatural phenomena, much of it filmed or photographed, with thousands of witnesses.

In a letter to Archbishop Hannan of New Orleans, Louisiana dated April 21, 1970, Cardinal Seper, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, stated that the Marian apparitions at Garabandal were found to be false and that the Church's position was based on the findings of the Bishop of Santander (Spain) who explored the matter in 1965. Again, in 1996, the new bishop in Garabandal, Jose Vilaplana, placed his prohibition on the alleged apparitions and said it is final.[1]

In April 2007, Conchita sent Joey Lomangino a copy of a letter dated February 12, 2007 from Carlos Sierra, Archbishop of Oviedo, the acting Apostolic Administrator for the Diocese of Santander in Spain to a prominent Garabandal supporter in that country. The tone of the Archbishop’s letter seems to indicate a warm familiarity with the apparitions and points to a new openness of the Hierarchy of the Church to the events at Garabandal. He also reasserts authorization for priests to go to Garabandal on pilgrimage and say Mass and hear confessions.

"I want you to know that I am open to receiving and considering all information about Garabandal, and would like to continue—as long as our Holy Father wishes me to serve as Apostolic Administrator—the work that my brothers at the Bishopric have already done in reference to this subject. What I have just done is authorize the priests to go to Garabandal and hold Holy Mass at the Parish, at any desired time, and to administer the Sacrament of Reconciliation to anyone that wishes to receive it. I am sure the next Bishop will promote further studies to examine in depth the Garabandal events and will send the findings to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome. I respect apparitions and have known of authentic conversions. How can we not always feel the need to open our heart to our Mother Mary to tell her that we need her protection, her help, her courage, her hope, her faith and her love when faced with these events! I encourage you to keep maintaining such devotion toward our Mother."

-Carlos, Archbishop of Oviedo[2]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ The Newsletter of Discernment
  2. ^ The Official Website of the Workers of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

[edit] External links

  • St. Joseph Publications, a non profit foundation, was incorporated in 1973 to foster devotion to St. Joseph and the Virgin Mary and make known messages given through apparitions. Books and videos of Our Lady’s apparitions, especially Garabandal and Fatima, are available on this site free for download.